Spread of HIV falls but risky conduct persists
Researchers worry that the gains are largely due to interventions such as improved ARV treatment rather than changed behaviour
The spread of HIV has slowed in SA in the past five years, with HIV incidence falling by almost half. But researchers are worried that the gains are largely due to interventions such as the provision of antiretroviral (ARV) treatment and male circumcision, rather than because people are changing their behaviour to reduce their risk of transmission. The findings are contained in the latest South African National HIV Prevalence, Incidence and Communication Survey, released on Tuesday, and raise questions about whether the government may have expanded its HIV treatment programme at the expense of prevention efforts. The survey is the fifth in a series that has been conducted since 2002, and was led by scientists at the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC). It was conducted between January and December 2017 and included interviews with more than 33,000 people, of whom 24,000 agreed to take an HIV test. It found the HIV incidence rate almost halved between 2012 and 2017, dropping from ...
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